Team feedback based on dialogue: Implications for change management

Abstract

Recent work in change management has emphasized the role of feedback in creating a readiness for, and contributing to acceptance of, the need for change. This article illustrates the development and application of an intervention protocol where differences in perceptual location among team members of an R&D team were used as a springboard for inducing them to talk more openly about their differences and to help them see how change could be constructed through dialogue as a medium. To the extent that team members were willing to create shared meaning, rather than gaining agreement on one meaning, they were more able to learn from each other and to "criss-cross" their views with each other, thus enhancing their understanding of the sorts of issues that are impeding their ability to perform.